What to Know
- Staten Island Ferry police officers saved a man an a woman from suspected overdoses within 2 hours of one another on Wednesday
- Officers administered three shots of naloxone to both people before they were revived
- There were 69 fatal drug overdoses on Staten Island in 2015, according to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
Police officers at the Staten Island Ferry Terminal saved two people from suspected opiate overdoses within two hours of each other in St. George on Wednesday.
A Department of Transportation worker alerted officers to an unconscious woman in the women's bathroom at around 12:40 p.m., authorities told SI Advance.
Once it was determined she was suffering from an overdose, the woman received three shots of naloxone, a medication that reverses the effects of opioids, before she was revived and taken to Richmond University Medical Center.
Nearly an hour and a half later, another officer spotted a man having a seizure on one of the terminal's bus ramps shortly after 2 p.m. authorities said. The officer concluded that he was suffering from an overdose and also administered three shots of naloxone before the man was revived.
Nine people were in need of police assistance from the NYPD's Ferry Security Unit this year to save them from a suspected opiate overdose. Officers are trained in the proper use of naloxone in case of emergencies.
Nobody has died under their watch so far.
Local
Staten Island had 69 fatal heroin overdoses in 2015, the highest rate in the city, according to data from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Thursday that the city would provide $3.85 million in funding to support ongoing efforts to combat heroin and prescription opioid misuse throughout the state.
